We go there again and again! If camping - not much shade and somehow the wind is always blowing there. But still one of my favourite camps. Nice reception/shop/restaurant area. Lots of birds if you're a birder, lots of animals to be seen right outside the fence. By the restaurant fence there's a waterhole frequented by wildebeest and elephant. Nice roads to explore from there. Beautiful nights - completely dark - good for stargazing. I can go on and on and on!

There are camping spots next to the fence, but as the regular campers will tell you they are quickly taken if you do not pitch camp early.

I'll challenge the "not much shade" with a "no shade" the small trees in the camping area does not give any noticeable shade. No grass and as GP said the wind tends to blow there more than other places in the park.

BUT, Satara is a lovely camp. Lots of animals in the area. And most probably the best sunsets in the Park.

psainsbury wrote:Should I start investing in a 100m extension cord or are the plugs now nearer than before?

Paul if you are planning to get into the camping thing, it is always a good idea to get a nice long extension cord…you might not need it on this specific trip, but you will possibly need it on the next. We learned the hard way

hi Oumie,
yes they upgraded the camping sites. Basically what they have done is to make several areas demarcated into 4 squares/rectangles. Where all the 4 squares meet they have situated the power supply for the 4 stands as well as a tap and garbage can. at night it is also lit up. There are a number of these areas and seem to be working on more. Personally i think it is a good idea as the rectangle is clearly demarcated and hopefully will dissuade certain campers from monopolising more than there fair share of space. Having a tap nearby is also a boon and you can simply connect a short hose to your caravans water tank.
There is also a new ablution block which unfortunately has been fitted with inferior taps. When I was there in January 07 I had to report on more than one occassion leaking taps and urinals.(The whole floor became flooded.) As far as I am concerned this is the best camp for game viewing but could not get any late bookings for the 19/5/07 to 26/5/07. Instead i will be camping at Malelane(first time) and Crocodile Bridge(my 2nd favourite camp.

Satara is my favourite camp, game-wise. Two idyllic holidays there as a kid in the 80s. On both occasions spent a week or more in a caravan. The camping area used to be a massive lush 'field' on the north side, was sad to see it had been left to become so arid, on our last visit (stopped there for lunch). But apparently this was the new policy, that camp grounds would be left to become more 'natural'.

As kids do, we hooked up with similar aged kids, and played like mad in camp. They had an autovilla, and secured a parking right up against the fence, whereas we were closer to the access road with our Fleetline II. Great times.

Back then (83 and 84), the ablutions were very new, and certainly the smartest in the park, very mod for the times, barring the then brand new BnD.

There are just so many routes to take, in all directions. West, with lots of loopies to Orpen, the Timbavati / Roodewal routes, N'wanetsi to the east, or the H1 in either direction.

Or if you wanted a quiet day in camp, where the takeaway joint is now, you could sit under the trees, and watch the goings on beyond the fence, or read a book, or whatever. Now it's just a clutter of tour buses and oriental visitors with enormous Canons.

I seem to recall an enormous fig tree on the lawns there, but the shade stunted the lawn growth, so expect it was cut down.

I also remember the resident bio-friendly lawn mowers... warthogs!

And the one day we did a drive all the way out to Orpen, and filled up there. Orpen camp was not electrified then, and the fuel pumps were hand-cranked. Which is fine if you just want ten litres. But not when you have a Ford Granada with 100-litre fuel tank! After about ten minutes of furious pumping, the attendant looked under the car to see if there was a leak!

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But anyways, I am SO STOKED! I got a BG3 in Satara in place of our night in Letaba, so the ridiculous Olifants-Letaba transition is out of the way, and the long drive down to Skuk is broken up.

But it does call into question the res system. At HQ on 2 March, the guy told me the park was uber full, which was weird, being school terms and mid-week. Now all of a sudden I can get my choice of accommodation wherever, pretty much.

Last trip: New Years in Skuks and SataraNext: ....................................................

We have to do that BB, because all our other campers have complained to me that your tent flaps go into their camp spaces.

Seriously though, we are busy upgrading all our camping facilities to having demarkated sites rather than the present situation of first come, first served. The advantages are numerous, but include:
* Star grading;
* No more arguments;
* Pre book certain campsites;
* No more arguments;
* Control over amount of people on a campsite;
* No more arguments;
* Ensuring decent facilities (eg taps, braai areas etc) are accessable for each camp site;
* No more arguments.

Hope that explains ...

Kind regards
KNP Spokesman

Kruger National Park
110 Years of Conservation Success - Now isn't that worthy of a Celebration!

Hi BB, We have just returned from Kruger. We only camped at LS but drove to Satara to find out what is happening etc.
1. All new demarcated campsites will NOT be numbered or ALLOCATED. First come first serve. As per Gordon the camp manager.
2.Only the ones against the fence at the left & those in the area next to the bottom ablution block (as you face the camp from the boom gate) are not yet done. They will be though.
3. The sites are pretty big, so there is more than enough room for max. six people. Basically four sites have a electrical box in the centre for those sites only. I think I saw one that had five.(behind the centre ablution block)
4.Some sites did not have paving blocks completely marking off the sites. A bit strange. Maybe they ran out of blocks & are still going to complete them.
5.Unfortunately a few sites have no or very little shade. They would like to plant trees says Gordon, but water is their problem.
6.In my opinion the best site is in the top right hand corner. It is big, has shade & on the fence. Most sites are OK. I personally think it is an improvement as you will not have anyone camping outside you tent or van like we had 2x last year.
7.Finally, they have altered the ironing slab to be smooth in the newest ablution block(top right corner) as last year it was only for crinkled clothes
I hope this is good news for all.

A quick note about camping at Satara.All sites are now demarcated but they are not allocated so it is still first come first serve. The sites are very big and you can still get the occasion where two parties camp on one site. They are big enough so this is not a problem. The problem comes in with the power. There is one power point in the centre of 4 sites. There are 5 plugs at each point but some people are greedy and use 2 plugs. The plug points are close to the sites so need for a long extension cord.The layout of the camp site is 2 big oval bricked roads, an east one and a west one. Then there is a small oval at the top north side, near the fence. Power points are scattered throughout the inner part of the circles. Shade is getting better but is still scares. When we camped last week most of the trees were still bare and offered little shade, but in a few weeks times with the rain it should get better. There is very little shade along the fence line and these sites normally go first. IMO the north east section has the best shade. These site however have no close power points so if you camp there take the long extension and enter the bun fight for power. For fence Shade the site right in front of the Rudy Frankel Guest House is great but need long extension. The site in front Stanley Guest House also has nice shade and you can see through to the Web Cam water hole. Here again you will need a long extension and run it over the road. A few people did this and it was not a problem. There are 3 ablution blocks so this is also not a problem. The eastern section of the camp def has more shade so start there first and see what you find.If you have good strong tent pegs the ground is not a problem. Don’t use those thin almost coat hanger wire pegs, they will bend. There is also no grass at all in the camp site but they are all quite level. The nice thing about Satara is they have no monkey/baboon problem, birds will have a go at open left over food, but you do not need to lock fridges and stow everything away.At each plug point there is also a water tap.

Satara remains my favourite camp If my memory serves me correctly, the answers to your questions are:1) Gate times depends on the time of the year: November it should be opening at 5:00 am and closing at 6:00 pm (me think .. not sure )2) you do not need 50 m extension for most of the sites, but it might be handy to have it. I recommend that you take it. There are enough water points. We do however take a big water bottle, fill it with ice in the morning and enjoy cool water when needed to drink.3) when we were there first week Oct, there were not a braai at every stand.4) you can bay firewood, meat, eggs, bread, ice-cream etc from the shop. The prices however seem to be a bit steep ... 5) stands next to the fence? we were lucky to get two when we arrived at approx 11:00. There are not many stands with shade / big trees.6) 7) consult your GP. We use citronella as repellent i guess as soon as somebody leaves the stand, the next camper can use it? there are book-in hours indicated at reception, but I assume it is more applicable to the bungalows etc.9) we never had any security related problems camping in Satara (at least five years) - and we use tents. 10) there is a garage, but no ATM. The shop does take credit cards.

To get a fence spot requires good timing. If you arrive too early and there are no fence spots available then you have to wait and see if anyone is about to pack up and leave. I f you arrive too late then the chances of getting a fence spot in July is slim. There is one ablution near the 'north western' side of the campsite / fence and this may be your best bet for a campsite near the fence / ablution block. Unfortunately there is not much shade next to the fence and although there are a few shady spots next to the fence I have never seen these un-occupied.

Personally I dont worry about the fence and I look for a shady spot nearer to the bungalow side of the camping area where there is more shade. Also the campsites around the remaining ablution blocks have shady areas where one can usually find a vacant spot if you arrive early.

Oldgoat - good on you winning the battle! You deserve this trip, and a great site at Satara! Sorry no pulling of strings, but some advice from experiences we have had.

I would aim to get to the camp sites by the very latest 9am. To me that is the best time - maybe even earlier, when there is the biggest selection of camp sites recently vacated. If you see someone packing up on a site you would really like, then you can park and wait for it. What will be first prize for you is a site close to the loos and on the fence and with shade!

I do think that there are many lovely sites at Satara - even those to the right side of the camp (facing the fence) in the 2nd or 3rd row are lovely.

I have also seen folk ask when someone is on a site they would love to have, when they are leaving and then, if it is a day or two's wait (depending on the length of their stay) they move. That seems like too much PT to me.

Watching the sun set over Africa from the fence at Satara is an awesome experience! Enjoy it! Even if you don't camp on the fence, there is still an area you can go and sit and enjoy the experience.

One cannot pre book campsites at Satara, in fact no where in Kruger, other than Tsendze. The P in the campsite code stands for power. The 6 is for the max number of people permitted on the site.

Getting a site with a nice view of the fence is first prize for me and it is also first prize for everyone else who camps at Satara

I suggest you head to Satara and get into the camp by 9am - that is before the others arrive and set up for the weekend and as soon after most people who are moving camp have packed up and left giving you the best opportunity to choose a nice camp site.

Lots of interesting sightings in Satara itself, such as wildcat and the resident scops owls and we have had a civet at the fence at the camping area before. I have also seen reports of honey badgers in Satara camp.